{"id":7691,"date":"2023-09-07T12:10:17","date_gmt":"2023-09-07T16:10:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/?p=7691"},"modified":"2023-09-07T12:10:17","modified_gmt":"2023-09-07T16:10:17","slug":"is-heaven-for-real-pastor-speaks-about-the-reality-of-heaven","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/2023\/09\/is-heaven-for-real-pastor-speaks-about-the-reality-of-heaven.html","title":{"rendered":"Is Heaven For Real? Pastor Speaks About the Reality of Heaven"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Lightstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pastor Jesse Bradley of Grace Community Church outside of Seattle, Washington, recently spoke with <\/span>Fox News Digital<\/span><\/em><\/a>\u00a0to address some of the most pressing questions he gets from people about Heaven. While admitting that \u201cNo mind can fully conceive all of the goodness God has designed for us\u201d in Heaven, Bradley did point out three key takeaways about Heaven, the first being that it is, in fact, a real place. He pointed to John 14:1-6, which states that Jesus is preparing a place for us. He reiterated that Christ is the only path to Heaven and that Heaven is the reward of His salvation. The\u00a0<\/span>Billy Graham Evangelistic Association<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(BGEA) addresses the idea of Heaven as symbolic rather than real. \u201cHeaven is a literal place because the Bible tells us so,\u201d wrote Billy Graham. He also says, \u201cThe Bible tells us that God set \u2018a firmament in the midst of the waters,\u2019 divided \u2018the waters from the waters,\u2019 and \u2018called the firmament Heaven\u2019 (Genesis 1:6-8).\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

More than just being real, Pastor Bradley also went on to describe the eternality of Heaven. \u201cGod\u2019s dwelling place, Heaven, will also be forever. No doubter, skeptic or opposition can ever take Heaven away from God,\u201d he said. Quoting CS Lewis in <\/span>Mere Christianity<\/span><\/em>, he goes on to quote the yearning of every human heart for another place as further evidence for the existence of Heaven. \u201cIf I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world,\u201d said Lewis in his great work.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, Pastor Bradley stressed how Heaven is a personal place. Referencing 1 Corinthians 15, Bradley said, \u201cWe will receive resurrected bodies and be reunited with loved ones in perfect relationships and unity,\u201d and that \u201cGod will finally dwell with us.\u201d Of course, there are many scoffers at the idea of Heaven. Arnold Schwarzenegger made headlines in June when he referred to Heaven as a \u201cfantasy.\u201d Mentioning a question he\u2019d received from Howard Stern about what happens after death, the action star <\/span>recalled<\/span><\/a>\u00a0saying, \u201cNothing. You\u2019re six feet under.\u201d He went on to say there will be no reunion with past loved ones \u201cExcept in some fantasy.\u201d \u201cWhen people talk about, \u2018I will see them again in heaven,\u2019 it sounds so good, but the reality is that we won\u2019t see each other again after we\u2019re gone. That\u2019s the sad part,\u201d he added.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Zachary Mettler of <\/span>The Daily Citizen<\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/span>responded<\/span><\/a>\u00a0to Schwarzenegger\u2019s comments, writing, \u201cIn all due respect, Mr. Schwarzenegger, you\u2019re wrong.\u201d He cited the\u00a0<\/span>historical proof<\/span><\/a>\u00a0of Jesus\u2019s life and resurrection. Like Pastor Bradley, he also referred to the human yearning for eternity, as CS Lewis had pointed out, and the meaninglessness of life without God. \u201c[If] there is no God, and there is no immortality \u2026 it means that life itself is absurd,\u201d he quoted Christian theologian\u00a0<\/span>William Lane Craig<\/span><\/a>. \u201cArnold Schwarzenegger is probably best known for his \u2018I\u2019ll be back!\u2019 catchphrase in \u2018The Terminator,\u2019\u201d wrote Mettler. \u201cAs Christians, we believe that it\u2019s Jesus who is coming back \u2013 and heaven is our eternal home.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pastor Jesse Bradley of Grace Community Church outside of Seattle, Washington, recently spoke with Fox News Digital\u00a0to address some of the most pressing questions he gets from people about Heaven. While admitting that \u201cNo mind can fully conceive all of the goodness God has designed for us\u201d in Heaven, Bradley did point out three key…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":664,"featured_media":7697,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nIs Heaven For Real? Pastor Speaks About the Reality of Heaven<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A Seattle Pastor speaks about the reality of Heaven.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/2023\/09\/is-heaven-for-real-pastor-speaks-about-the-reality-of-heaven.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is Heaven For Real? 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